Israel-Hamas War: ‘If Israel stops the war then…’, Hamas is ready for a compromise after the attack on Rafah

Hamas said on Thursday it had told mediators it would not participate in further talks during the ongoing offensive, but was ready for a full settlement, including a hostage and prisoner swap, if Israel halted the fighting.

Talks brokered by Egypt and others including Qatar to arrange a ceasefire between Israel and the Islamist movement in the Gaza war have repeatedly stalled, with both sides blaming each other for the lack of progress.

Israel is not even listening to ICJ

Hamas’ latest statement comes when Israel continues to attack the southern Gaza city of Rafah despite the order of the UN’s top court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to stop the attacks. Recently, many civilians were killed in the Israeli attack on Rafah.

Hamas agreed to the agreement on this condition

Hamas and the Palestinian factions will not accept to be a part of this policy by continuing (ceasefire) talks in the face of aggression, siege, starvation and genocide of our people. Today we have conveyed our clear position to the mediators that if Israel stops its war and aggression against our people in Gaza, we are ready to reach a full settlement, including a comprehensive exchange deal.

Israel rejects previous proposals

Israel has rejected previous proposals from Hamas as inadequate and says it remains determined to wipe out the group bent on its destruction. Israel says its Rafah offensive is focused on rescuing hostages and rooting out Hamas fighters.

The health ministry says nearly 36,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s offensive across Gaza. Israel launched the operation after Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israeli communities on October 7 last year, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostage, according to Israeli figures.